Best Seller

  "Everyone, take a look, Sleeping Lotus electric fan's top 10 shortcomings are exposed!"

  "Don't miss out on the road! Shui Lian brand electric fan has ten major drawbacks!"

  On the bustling Huaihai Road, a discordant shout suddenly rang out. Several promoters wearing clothes with "Sleeping Lotus Electric Fan" printed on them shouted shocking and vulgar words while distributing promotional materials to passersby.

  "What's going on? Is this factory crazy?"

  "Maybe it's a rival framing us?"

  "I've never heard of Shui Lian brand electric fans."

  People murmured in their hearts while taking over the propaganda pages handed over by the propagandists, watching the content on them.

  The promotional page of Hanhua Industrial Company, looking at it with today's eyes, can only be described in one word: ugly. The entire page is filled to the brim with text, without a single image. The printing is also black and white, using the same font size of Songti font.

  Even with such an ugly propaganda page, it was a lot of trouble to print. The printing factory insisted that Xiong Liming show a letter, otherwise they would not be able to print. Xiong Liming couldn't get this thing, so he had no choice but to go ask Le Chuan to intervene. Le Chuan had some connections at the printing factory, and he issued a letter from the Red Star Department Store, which finally got the printing factory to agree to help Xiong Liming print these propaganda materials.

  The content on the promotional materials came from Lin Zhenhua's bad taste, he imitated some manufacturers in later generations who used the method of mingjian and anbiao, and designed the top ten shortcomings of Sleeping Lotus electric fans with a twist, letting Xiong Liming bring Qi Qinghui and Zhang Wencheng to shout along the street, attracting people's attention.

  "One of the drawbacks is that Shui Lian brand electric fans are too good, one fan can be used for three generations, leading to the next generation having an idle mind."

  "The second drawback is that the Sleep Lotus electric fan is too beautiful, so when her husband comes home, he always goes to look at the fan first and ignores his wife's existence, which can easily lead to family conflicts."

  "The third drawback is that the Shui Lian electric fan is ultra-quiet, and people often neglect to turn it off when leaving the house, resulting in unnecessary electricity consumption..."

  This self-deprecating approach was once popular for a short time in the past and indeed had a great eye-catching effect. However, it was soon rejected by consumers because this approach somewhat looked down on the consumer's intelligence. At first, it seemed fresh, but after being used many times, it became a farce. Nevertheless, at that time, it was still an era when the market economy was extremely underdeveloped, and the effect of this hype was exceptionally good. Everyone who got the promotional materials was attracted by this novel approach.

  "What's wrong with that? It's all advantages!" People who can't turn their brains around are puzzled all day.

  "Is it really that amazing? I have to go check it out after work." This is what people who understood the promotional page were thinking.

  "Little Wang, I saw a promotional material on Huaihai Road today, and the things written on it are really funny. Let me read them to you... I'm dying of laughter..." This is how young men in love finally find something to talk about with their girlfriends again.

  After being questioned and ridiculed, everyone thought of a question: what kind of divine artifact is this Shui Lian brand electric fan?

  It is clearly written on the promotional materials: Red Star Department Store and four other department stores will put it on sale at the same time, with limited quantity available. Those who want to buy should hurry up.

  "Sleeping lotus! Sleeping lotus!"

  At the time of getting off work, a frenzy was stirred up in front of the electrical appliance counter at Hongxing Department Store. At first, people just came to watch with an attitude of onlookers, but as soon as the electric fan was placed on the counter, everyone's eyes were fixed on it. Especially those young women and housewives who were full of petty-bourgeois sentiment, they couldn't wait to take this beautiful fan home immediately.

  "Old Zhang, look at this fan, isn't it beautiful? Compared to the one we have at home, it's too rustic!" said a fashionable young woman, tugging on her husband.

  Husband's face was gloomy: "But, Little Li, ours at home was bought just two years ago."

  "Just take it away and sell it. My uncle's family in the countryside has been saying they want to buy an electric fan, so we can sell it to them at a lower price."

  "This electric fan doesn't look very sturdy, does it? With such a small base, it looks like it'll fall over when the wind blows."

  "No way, I thought it was quite stable when I put it there."

  “……”

  Xiong Lijun stood inside the counter, seeing such a fiery scene, and couldn't help but feel excited, his blood boiling over. He moved over a stool, stood on it, held up an electric fan and shouted to the crowd:

  "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to visit and purchase our Shui Lian brand electric fan. I am the manager of Jiangnan Province Hanhua Industrial Company's Shanghai sales office, my name is Xiong Lijun, you can just call me Little Bear. Look, this electric fan in my hand is our Shui Lian brand product. For your convenience to see it clearly, I hang it on the wall for everyone to appreciate."

  After shouting this sentence, Xiong Lijun pretended to search the wall and muttered loudly: "Ah, why isn't there a single nail on the wall? Never mind, Little Qi, bring me a nail."

  Qiu Qinghui handed over a large cement nail that had been prepared in advance, and Xiong Lijun grabbed the base of the electric fan in his hand and used it as a hammer to tap the nail into the wall with a few loud knocks.

  As a result, almost everyone in front of the home appliance counter was drinking like crazy, this advertisement is really too powerful, who else can produce an electric fan that can be used as a hammer?

  Everyone has a heart that loves beauty, but in an era of material scarcity, the durability of a product is also a very important consideration for consumers. When aesthetics and durability conflict, most people will choose the latter.

  Lin Zhenhua didn't understand consumer psychology, but he was good at listening to opinions. In the design process of electric fans, he consulted people from all walks of life, recorded everyone's ideas one by one, and put them into practice in the design. The cast iron base of the electric fan took into account both aesthetics and durability.

  In terms of cost, there is not much increase because Hanhua Machinery Factory already has a foundry workshop that can smelt iron water. The base of the fan does not require high mechanical properties, and it can be cast in large quantities by simply melting some scrap iron.

  "I want one!"

  "Bring me one!"

  “……”

  "Old Zhang, hurry up and go home to get your deposit book to withdraw money, or it will be too late!" The fashionable young woman was anxious.

  "Now the banks are all closed, where can we get money?" The husband, Old Zhang, scowled and cursed in his heart the factory that produced this electric fan. Damn it, couldn't you have made the fan a bit uglier?

  "Then go find someone to borrow from quickly. Right, your fourth aunt's family is doing business, they must have cash on hand."

  "Xiao Li, you're not mistaken, are you? My fourth aunt's house is in Pudong. You want me to go there now?"

  It's so hot, fortunately the salesmen of Red Star Department Store are not unfamiliar with this scene of scrambling for popular goods, and I am calm and composed. They directed customers to line up in long queues, then opened tickets, collected money, and delivered goods one by one.

  As Lao Chuan said, the purchasing power of Shanghai people is really frightening. Although it was after work hours and many people didn't have cash on them, 100 electric fans were quickly sold out. Countless customers who rode their bicycles over, panting for breath, surrounded the home appliance counter, loudly inquiring when the next batch of goods would arrive.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, tomorrow we will release 400 more units, welcome everyone to come and purchase!" Xiong Lijun stood at a high place and loudly announced.

  "Hey, manager, can that one on the wall be sold?" A customer with a keen eye spotted the one Xiong Lijun had brought over for display, which was still hanging on the wall in a rather ridiculous posture.

  "This one?" Xiong Lijun was taken aback, he took down the electric fan and looked at the base, saying: "Sorry about that, earlier when I was hammering nails, some of the paint underneath got chipped off."

  "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, what's the harm in a little paint, and no one will see it anyway."

  "Just go back and find some paint to touch it up yourself. I want it, sell it to me!"

  "Why should I give it to you? I saw it first."

  "I said it first!"

  Finally, the electric fan with a little paint dropped off at the bottom was successfully sold out, 3 yuan cheaper than the market price. The customer who bought this electric fan felt like he had picked up a bargain, it's just a little bit of paint, which doesn't affect the appearance or use, and it's 3 yuan cheaper, which is worth two days' food expenses.

  After repeatedly explaining that there will be new electric fans arriving the next day, the customers reluctantly left, thinking to themselves whether they should take a leave from work tomorrow and come queue up early. The manager said that there will only be 400 units available tomorrow, looking at today's situation, if you don't queue up in advance, it's likely that you won't be able to buy one at all.

  Seeing off the customers, Le Chuan walked up to Xiong Lijun with a smile and said: "Manager Xiong, congratulations! With so many electric fans on the market, your new brand can sell so well, it's really something to be happy about."

  Xiong Liming hastily said: "Where, where, we are all fortunate to have Manager Tuo Le. If it weren't for the good reputation of your Red Star Department Store, our electric fans wouldn't sell at all."

  "However, Manager Xiong, you just hammered nails on my wall. Isn't that considered damaging public property? Shouldn't you compensate for it?"

  "This..." Xiong Lijun was suddenly choked, but no, other people's department stores are not like the Hanhua factory building, their white walls were brushed, and he himself nailed a nail in.

  "Manager Le, you decide how to compensate."

  "It's very cheap now, just give me another 2,000 units of goods." Le Chuan revealed a sly merchant face.

  Xiong Liming said: "No problem, isn't it just 2,000 units? Manager You wants them, and it's just a matter of one sentence."

  Le Chuan wouldn't really feel sorry for the nail on the wall, on the contrary, he thought that Xiong Liming's move was very clever. I estimate that by now, half of Shanghai knows that Shui Lian brand electric fans can be used as hammers. Think about it, beautiful appearance, practical function, and can also be used for self-defense. As the saying goes: It's really the best choice for home travel, murder, and robbery!

  Just as we had finalized the 2000 units deal, a salesperson walked in with two people from outside. The one in front, looking dejected, was Zhang Wencheng, one of Xiong Lijun's subordinates. The one behind, wearing a uniform and looking serious, surprisingly turned out to be a policeman.

  "Who is the manager of Hanhua Industrial Company?" The police officer asked with a dark face.

  "I am, I am." Xiong Lijun hastily stepped forward, without saying a word, and handed over a cigarette. "Comrade policeman, I am Xiong Lijun, the manager of Hanhua Industrial Company's Shanghai sales office."

  The policeman waved his hand and refused the cigarette offered by Xiong Lijun, saying: "Is this person an employee of your unit?"

  "What did he do?"

  "Is he distributing promotional materials on the street? Has this matter been approved by the police station?"

  "Do we need to report for approval?" Xiong Lijun was a bit stunned, no way, when he ran the Xin Xin store in Fenghua, he had done such things before, and hadn't heard that the police station would interfere.

  Le Quan walked up and took the cigarette from Xiong Lijun's hand, handing it to the police officer. "Officer Nian, this is a misunderstanding," he said. "Manager Xiong is from out of town and isn't familiar with Shanghai's regulations. I forgot to remind him, so that's how this misunderstanding happened."

  The policeman's name was Nai Junwu, who was in charge of this area and naturally familiar with Le Chuan. Seeing Le Chuan come out to speak, his face softened a bit, and he took the cigarette, while Xiong Lijun hurried forward to light it for him with a lighter.

  "I just heard this young man shouting on the street, saying something about the top ten shortcomings of Sleeping Beauty electric fans. What are you people up to? Are you slandering other companies' products? This is not allowed, do you know that?" said Ni Junwu.

  Le Chuan burst out laughing: "Xiao Ni, you don't know, this is their own doing. This Shui Lian brand electric fan is actually their own product. They said it has ten major shortcomings, but in fact they are all advantages."

  "Oh, is there such a saying?" Nian Junwu also became curious, "What's going on?"

  Before Bear stood up for himself, the salesperson at the side had already rattled off the so-called top ten shortcomings one after another. Ni Junwu listened and shook his head repeatedly, saying: "This is too exaggerated, can it really be that good?"

  "Whether it's good or not, the customers know. Look, I still have several brands of electric fans that aren't selling well here, but theirs, within two hours, 100 units were sold out, and tomorrow there are still 400 units, I'm worried they won't be enough to sell."

  "Is it really that good?" Nian Junwu seemed somewhat moved.

  Xiong Liming was quite perceptive, seeing this scene, he secretly gave Le Chuan a look. Le Chuan was also an old hand, and his relationship with the police station was not bad either, so he naturally knew what to do. He said to Niu Junwu: "Little Niu, if you're interested, tomorrow you can bring Liu Suozhang and others over to take a look, I'll leave five for your police station. As for the price... our current retail price is 248, for your police station..."

  "It can be sold at the ex-factory price, 180 yuan per unit." Xiong Lijun said immediately. He remembered what Lin Zhenhua had told him before, this police station should be a worthwhile object to get along with.

  "That's too kind of you." Ni Junwu was all smiles, completely unlike the cold and frosty demeanor he had when he first arrived. He chatted with Le Kuang and Xiong Lijun for a few sentences before getting up to leave. As he was about to walk out the door, he seemed to casually mention: "Manager Xiong, if you're still going to send out notices tomorrow, don't forget to come to the police station to file a record."

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